A solar cell, which is a well known device for converting solar radiation to electrical energy, may comprise P-type and N-type diffusion regions. Solar radiation impinging on the solar cell creates electrons and holes that migrate to the diffusion regions, thereby creating voltage differentials between the diffusion regions. The diffusion regions are electrically connected to corresponding terminals to allow an external electrical circuit to be connected to and be powered by the solar cell. The positive terminal of the solar cell is electrically connected to the P-type diffusion regions, while the negative terminal of the solar cell is electrically connected to the N-type diffusion regions.
Solar cells may be electrically connected in series to form a photovoltaic string. The photovoltaic string may comprise several solar cells and/or photovoltaic modules, with each photovoltaic module comprising solar cells mounted on the same frame. In a photovoltaic string, the positive terminal of one solar cell is electrically connected to the negative terminal of another solar cell, the positive terminal of the other solar cell is electrically connected to the negative terminal of yet another solar cell, and so on. The output voltage of a photovoltaic string depends on the number of solar cells in the string.